Let’s talk about terpenes.  Terpenes are the compounds found in plants that give them their distinctive aromas.  The FDA has given terpenes their highest safety rating, placing them in their GRAS list of ingredients.  But there are so much more to these wonderful plant compounds than simply interesting aromas.  Terpenes are very powerful trigger compounds that act on receptors and neurotransmitters.  For example, some terpenes signal serotonin uptake inhibitors similar to antidepressants like Prozac.  Other terpenes promote norepinephrine activity similar to tricyclic antidepressants such as Elavil.  Still others increase dopamine activity in various regions of the brain.  And other terpenes enhance GABA the neurotransmitter that calms while inhibiting excitatory glutamate receptors.  With over 50,000 known terpenes, the effects of these wonderful compounds is near endless. 

The entire world seems to be turned on to terpenes due to their focal point in differentiating strains of cannabis but that is just the beginning.  Basically speaking, terpenes are the volatile aromatic molecules that a plant or flower emits.  While there are over 200 terpenes present in cannabis, there are over 50,000 other terpenes that exist in the remainder of the plant world.  In fact, there is an entire sector of science surrounding terpenes called Olfaction, which has been the basis of Nobel Prize research.  Olfaction science has proven that terpenes have incredible effects in reaching biological targets (receptor groups) in the brain and body – turning on or off different regions responsible for a variety of physiological and psychological events.  The inhalation of specific terpene blends can create a calm, relaxed state while a different terpene set can create an aroused, energetic state.  Similarly, any aficionado of smoked cannabis knows that certain terpenes can create the munchies (hunger) but they might not have been aware that other terpenes can create satiety (fullness).

Terpenes are organic hydrocarbons found in plants’ essential oils that donate flavor and scent to their hosts. (1) Cannabis terpenes are made in the trichomes or the shiny, sticky crystals that cover the leaves and the buds. Interestingly, trichomes protect plants from the dangers of insects and animals by producing fragrant terpenes to repel them. Scent is nature’s way of saving the lives of plants by fending off natural enemies. Terpenes should not be confused with terpenoids, though the names are sometimes used interchangeably. Terpenoids are terpenes that have been modified through drying or curing which causes a chemical modification and alters the oxygen content of the compound. Terpenes have been used for healing for thousands of years because they can produce particular effects. Focused benefits allow delivery of enhanced functionality, and the potential for more immediate and complete relief. Specialized targeting can deliver both desired health benefits and loyal customer bases. Because grow conditions along with plant genetics determine the value of terpene composition, improved functionality will continue to advance marketplace selections as growers manipulate terpene composition and consumers capitalize on rapid, focused relief with no negative side effects. Add the formulator’s manipulation of terpenes and terpene groupings plus the expanded understanding of the olfactory system to the mix, and the potential benefits of terpenes to produce substantial health enhancement all seem poised to revolutionize how we maintain health. Looking at the role’s terpenes play in “The Entourage Effect” immediately shows how versatile and useful they are, and how widespread their potential wellness benefits can be. Whether capitalizing on one added terpene or a calculated terpene grouping, or the entourage of full spectrum or broad spectrum hemp, terpenes can deliver relief, calm, energy, sleep, determination and focus, or even a general bounce of sociability. Terpenes can be broadly broken down into sweet, spicy, sour or bitter but more detailed classifications would include more specified smells such as fruity and citrus or floral and herbal or earthy, spicy, bitter or woodsy or pine aromas. While there are over 200 terpenes in cannabis, (2) it is a small percentage of the 50,000 terpenes that exist in the larger plant world. (3) Consumers currently guzzle green tea for its phytonutrients, or take herbal supplements and ayurvedic remedies, or eat vegan diets to gain some kind of competitive edge on healthy living, but it is more likely that the people who are suffering in some way and need relief are the ones that have had an introduction to the healing and health filled wonders of aromatic terpenes.

We understand that it can get confusing. but although hemp and marijuana are both classified as cannabis sativa in the plant world; hemp and marijuana are very different plants and CBD and THC are very different cannabinoids.  Some of the confusion comes because genetically, hemp is always classified as cannabis sativa and many forms of marijuana can classified as cannabis sativa as well (marijuana can also be cannabis indica or less often cannabis ruderalis).  

Since both hemp and marijuana plants can be cannabis sativa, it stands to reason that many people assume that they are identical.  Wrong!  Just as cucumis melo can be either a musk melon or a honeydew melon (very different melons), cannabis sativa can be hemp or marijuana (two very different plants).  The true, practical difference is how hemp has been bred versus that of a marijuana form of cannabis sativa. Hemp is very fibrous, with long strong stalks and barely any flowering buds, while a marijuana forms of cannabis sativa will be smaller, bushier and full of flowering buds. Marijuana, almost always, has a high amount of THC and only a very low amount of non-intoxicating cannabinoids such as CBD. Hemp, on the other hand, naturally, has a very high amount of CBD and only a trace amount of THC.  

In other words, THC from marijuana will get you high; while CBD from hemp will get you healthy. 

Goal: Fat loss, body shaping and increased energy for daily lifestyle activities.
Over 70 percent of adults in the United States are overweight or obese. Forty-five percent of overweight Americans and 67% of those who are obese are trying to lose weight on any given day.

There are two primary reasons why a person gains weight or fails to lose weight.

The number one reason is obvious, right? They eat too much. And although we don’t want to admit it, the truth is that diets don’t work. This fact is obvious since every year a greater majority of the population gains more and more weight. The answer to weight loss is in the medical research that consistently demonstrates
that of all the various target behaviors studied, greatest weight loss doesn’t come from any fad diet or any magic pill. It doesn’t come from eating more vegetables, from eating less fruit, from trimming fat from the table or from planned exercise sessions. The target behavior that results in the greatest weight loss for overweight individuals is portion control. This the “D.E.S.M directive” as in “Don’t Eat So Much.” Simple, logical, true. Eating smaller portions results in less calorie consumption and in greater weight loss.

The second leading reason for people not losing weight, you have probably guessed, is internal rather than external. Wouldn’t you like to be more like “that” friend of yours who can eat anything, sit around all day and never gain weight That all centers on training the body’s biochemistry to work for fat loss
rather than against fat loss. Stimulating genes and mitochondria to burn fat as energy to fuel more activity, getting hormones like ghrelin, leptin and insulin to keep calories from being stored as fat, etc. are all critical parts of the biochemical equation.

These two goals can best be achieved with broad spectrum hemp, containing a standardized amount of CBD working in synergy with other plant-based cannabinoids, terpenes and flavonoids to create coordinated, powerful changes. Americans need to stop spend billions of dollars on diet products while they continue to gain weight rather than lose weight. These diet products on the shelves are simply ineffective or have far too many ingredients in too small amounts to be helpful. The average diet product contains 10 different ingredients, but some contain as many as 96. The better products employ less ingredients in more biologically active strengths. The best product Pure Bliss CBD also employ’s
science’s newest, coolest and most effective ingredient – full spectrum hemp and CBD.

The Science Behind CBD and Weight Loss.

Portion Control: Farrimond, et al. (1) has demonstrated that less food is consumed when CBD is taken daily. This is as simple and straight forward as it gets. Supplemented CBD results in less calories consumed and great portion control.

The reasons behind this, however, can get quite complex. Li, et al. (2) has proven that the activation of cannabinoid receptors expressed by islet cells can stimulate insulin secretion, which obviously helps utilize sugars for energy. Additionally, they found that under normal physiological conditions, cannabinoid signaling by CBD on the endocannabinoid system receptors in the endocrine pancreas resulted in a true mechanism of regulating insulin secretion to maintain blood glucose levels thereby decreasing appetite and the desire to sugar binge.

Biochemical Regulation: Rosenson (3) provided a review of the recent evidence from animal and human studies that shows a role for the endocannabinoid system in maintaining energy balance and glucose and lipoprotein metabolism. Overwhelming evidence exists showing that modulation of this system
through endocannabinoid-receptor blockade by cannabinoids like CBD results in an improvement in a number of important risk factors for obesity related diseases including visceral and subcutaneous abdominal adipose tissue, glucose tolerance, dyslipidemia and measures of inflammation. These findings may have significant implications not only for weight loss but for the management of patients at risk of developing cardiovascular and metabolic disease.

Additionally, Parray and Yun (4) found that CBD stimulates genes and proteins that enhance the breakdown and oxidation of fat (fat burning) while decreasing the expression of proteins involved in lipogenesis (fat cell generation). This is direct evidence that you can train your biochemistry through proper nutrient support to overcome even genetic hurdles to weight loss and body shaping. Further they demonstrated that CBD increases the number and activity of mitochondria, the powerhouses of the cell, which increases the body’s ability to burn calories. Collectively, these results come from the ability of CBD to induce “fat browning”; that is, converting what is normally white-colored fat tissue (WAT-white adipose tissue) that stores energy in the form of fat to beige-colored fat tissue (BAT-brown and beige adipose tissue) that burns it. It is an established fact that boosting beige-colored fat improves glucose tolerance, improving resistance to diabetes and various blood lipid abnormalities.

1. Farrimond, J.A., Whalley, B.J. and Williams, C.M. Cannabinol and cannabidiol exert opposing
effects on rat feeding patterns. Psychopharmacology, 2012, 223(1), 117-29.
2. Li, C., Jones, P.M., and Persaud, S.J. Role of the endocannabinoid system in food intake, energy
homeostasis and regulation of the endocrine pancreas. Pharmacology and
Therapeutics, 2011,129(3), 307-20.
3. Rosenson, R. S. Role of the endocannabinoid system in abdominal obesity and the implications
for cardiovascular risk. Cardiology, 2009,114(3), 212-25.
4. Parray, H.A. and Yun, J.W. Cannabidiol promotes browning in 3T3-L1 adipocytes. Molecular and
Cellular Biochemistry, 2016, 416,131–139.